Football Season Guide

FC Utrecht had a good previous season in general, as they claimed the 5th position on the ranking table after 34 matches. Still the season ended with disappointment for the Utrecht side, because they lost out to Heracles Almelo in the final of the Europa League play-offs. FC Utrecht produced several impressive performances during the previous season and they will be aiming to repeat those in the upcoming season. The battle for the Europa League play-off places will be interesting again in the season 2016/2017, but FC Utrecht might be targetting the 4th place at the end of the season to avoid those play-offs. In the previous season they just missed out on that 4th spot, because of a defeat against AZ Alkmaar in the final round of play. Coach Erik ten Hag did incredibly well in his first season at FC Utrecht and he will be hoping that some of his key players will stay in Utrecht until the transfer window closes. Still a few players have left FC Utrecht during this summer. Striker Ruud Boymans has made a transfer to Dubai, while Ruben Ligeon's loan from Ajax has ended. He will continue his career at Slovan Bratislava. Christian Kum and goalkeeper Filip Bednarek have made transfers within the Netherlands, to Roda JC and De Graafschap respectively. The Utrecht side has already signed a stand-in for Bednarek, as Danish goalkeeper David Jensen came over from FC Nordsjaelland. Kristoffer Peterson and Gyrano Kerk have returned to Utrecht during this summer, after their loans to respectively Roda JC and Helmond Sport have ended. Key striker Sebastien Haller caught the attention of several clubs in Europe during the previous season with his goals, but he is still in Utrecht, even though he was almost transferred during the winter break of last season. FC Utrecht will surely be hoping that he will not be taken away before the 1st of September, but it does not look very likely that Haller will play for FC Utrecht during the upcoming season. The same goes for Timo Letschert, who has had an impressive season in the Utrecht defense in 2015/2016. He wants to develop himself and reach a higher level at a top team in the Netherlands or maybe outside Holland, but there has not been made a deal about him yet. It seems like FC Utrecht can build on most of the same players as in the previous season, so the core of the team and their way of playing will most probably stay the same, but the situation of a few players remains uncertain. A departure of those players can have an adverse effect on the ambitions of the Utrecht side for the upcoming season.